Process for cleaning grains.



PATENTED JAN. 30, 1906.

H. G. MILLER. PROCESS FOR. CLEANING GRAINS.

APPLICATION FILED NINE 18, 1904.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

INVENTUR #wwh e. )zuzlu E! WITNESSES: 92 7% A rromvn' H. O. MILLER. PROCESS FOR CLEANING GRAINS.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 18, 1904.

PATENTED JAN. 30, 1906.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

WITNESSES.- I INVEIITOR W a hub? @M- m/( 2:3 Ii

I l N [TED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HARVEY C. MILLER, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA. PROCESS FOR CLEANING GRAINS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. 30, 1906.

To (all w/mm it 'nwq concern.-

Be it known that I, HARVEY C. MILLER, a

citizen of the United States, residing at Phil adclphia, county of Philadelphia, and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Processes for Cleaning Grains, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, which form a part of this specification.

In many cases grain-such, for instance, as corn or wheathas been damaged either by becoming musty or coated or impregnated with dirt or other foreign material or in any other manner, whereby its original quality or luster is impaired. By reason of this the grain becomes of a lower grade from its initial condition, and thus is sold at a lower price.

My invention has for its object to take this character of grain and by the treatment hereinafter descrlbed restore it to its initial condition or bring it to a higher grade than it was before treatment. The process or method which I use to obtain this result consists in first thoroughly drying the grain. This initial treatment brings the foreign mat ter to a dry condition, enabling it to be readily removed by the subsequent treatment. As I use air for this drying step, it also to a greater or less extent deodorizes the grain and brings it and its contained matter to a cool and drycondition. The grain after this preliminary treatment passes by gravity through a chamber over inclined abradingsurfaces, which are so arranged that the movement of the grain 1s from time to time suddenly arrested and the direction of the movement changed. This treatment causes the grain to roll or tumble round and round, bringing all tion of the a rading-surface. The stoppage and change of direction, as it were, jolts the grain, disintegrating the foreign material. A current of air passes up ber (preferably by suction) in a direction opposite to the movement of the grains to act upon the foreign matter. As before 'described, the grain enters this chamber after having been thoroughly dried and cooled and with the foreign matter reduced to a thoroughly dried condition. In this condition in the passage of the grain over the abradingsurfaces and with the shock of the periodical arrest of its motion and change of direction the foreign matter becomes loosened or separts of the grain under the acthrough this chama hopper F arated therefrom and the air-current carries it away in such a manner that the grain passing away at the end of the chamber is entirely free from its foreign matter. The movement of the grain over the abradingsurfaces will also polish the surface of the grain. As will hereinafter appear, while in most cases wood will be sufficient as an abrading-surface, yet if a sharper abrading-surface be required a metal projection, such as a wire screen, may be interposed on the wood.

Where I have spoken and hereinafter speak 1of grain, I mean wheat, corn, oats, and the ike.

I will now describe an apparatus for carrymg out my process, which apparatus is illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a sectional elevation. Fig. 2 is a section on line 2 2 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a section'on line 3 3 of Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is a section on line 4 4 of Fig. 1.

As before described, the grain to be treated, with its foreign matter, is first thoroughly dried, cooled, and partially or entirely deodorized. This is accomplished in the apparatus shown in detail in Figs. 1 and 2. It consists of two solid end walls a, divided into two longitudinal chambers A and an intermediate chamber B by the perforated walls a. The walls a are preferably formed of wire screen. In each of these chambers A are inclined sets of shelves or vanes C, projecting toward each other from opposite walls of each chamber, leaving aspace c in each chamber A between the ends of said vanes. D is a receiving-hopp er having distributing-chutes d d d to each chamber A and entering said chamber A-at different points in their width. Connected with the space B is a fan E. This apparatus is placed in an open room, where it as free access to the air, and the grain is fed from the hopper into the chambers A. The fan is then operated. This causes a current of air to pass from the outside of the chambers A across the chambers A into the space B. In this movement of the air it passes through the grain in the chambers A, and this action of the air, in connection with the vanes C and space 0, causes the grains to be shifted and turned from side to side, exposing all parts of the grain to the air. This action is continued until the grain is thoroughly dried and cooled. From the bottom of each of the chambers A three chutes e e e lead to valve e controls the. delivery from chambers over the vertical shaft F. A

IIC

A to chutes e 6 e By this valve the time which the rain is held in chambers A may be determined. In the case of grain which has become greatly heated or very wet it may be retained in the chambers A for a longer period to enable the air to act on it for a greater length of time.

The top of the shaft F is closed by the gate or valve F. There is also an outlet G, connected witha fan H, the shaft being otherwise closed at the top. In this shaft projecting from op osite sides are the inclined shelves I, su stantially of like angle. The shelf projecting from one side, however, oversaid shelf. The shelves are under ordinary circumstances made of wood, although one or more of them may be covered bya roughened or corrugated metallic. plate or screen K, as shown inFig. 2,. with respectto the lowermost shelf. .Thisplate or screen K is hinged at 7c and has connected to it a cord which asses through the wall of the shaft. So by it t e plate may be manipulated from the outside to superimpose the. roughened plate upon the shelf, as shown in full- 'nes,Fi 1-, or to lift it free therefrom and out of the ine of travel of the grain, as shown in dotted lines in said figure. Near the lower end of the shaft F is an opening L, connected with the atmosphere. At the bottom of the shaft F is the delivery-chute M. As may be seen, with the exception of the air-inlet and opening leading to thefan and the valve or gate the shaft is practically closed.

When the grain, as before described, is

thoroughly dried and cooled in and by the apparatus and method first described, it passes by the chutes e e e to the hopper F and when the gate F is opened it asses by gravity through the shaft F an out the chute M, Durin its assage through the shaft it first rolls own t e first shelf I. Afterleaving the lower end thereof it strikes against the upper end of the next shelf I,

. mg its motion tom .l i which is carried 0 in the opposite direction; This abrading action also polishes the surface of the grain.

lly described, strikes the next lower The abrading surfaces or shelves may be roughened, if desired and necessary, by any means desired, one being shown and before described.

r I do not herein claim the apparatus before described, as the same forms the subjectmatter of a separate application filed by me September 27, 1904, Serial No. 226,107, the

same being a division of this application.

what I claim, and- Patent, is

- 1. The heeipbefore-describedd method of puri 'an 0 eanin must or irt rains, whimgnsists in firsf thorofi ghly dr y i%1gthe grains, then'subjecting the grain-"in thatcon- 'tion to an abrading'action.

2. The hereinbefore-described method of puri 'ng and-cleaning musty or dirty grains, whic consists in first-thoroughly dr 'ng and cooling the Cgrains, then subjecting all. grains in that con ition to an abrading action.

3. The hereinbefore-describedmethod of puriY-ing and cleaning musty or dirty grains, whic consists in first thoroughly drying the ains, then subjecting the grainin that con- 'tion to an abrading action, and durin said action carrying off the abraded materia by a 1 currento-f air.

esire to protect by Letters 4.. The. hereinbefore-described method of puri ng and cleaning musty or dirty grains,

whic consists .in first thoroughly dr. 'ng and cooling the rains, then subjectingv t e. grains in that con 'tion to an abrading action, and

material by a current of air.

5.f}'7Ihe eeipbefore-describeddlmethod of uri in an o eanin must or 'rt rains vhich cd nsists in firstgthoroiighly d 'Iig the grains, then subjecting the grain int at conition to an abrading action, and durin said action carrying off the'abraded materia by a currentof air, moving in a direction opposite to that of the movement of the grain.

Y 'HABVEY 'c. MILLER. I Witnesses: I

M. -M. HAMILTON, WIL IAM- B.-'MARKS'.

Having now full described my invention,

during said action'carrying off the abraded 6; The hereinbefore-described method of 

